Creating Phenomenal Success by Accepting Your Today’s Best Effort – Daily Quote

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When we first start a new endeavor, our ultimate success or failure is often even odds. Tipping the scales in our favor comes when we apply our best effort towards our goal. A dogged determination helps us conquer setbacks and challenges, and an optimistic attitude keeps our spirits lifted.

If we are fortunate, inspiration arrives when we flounder, and mentors who have traveled a similar pathway offer guidance and insight as we take the journey along our chosen path. Setting and striving for a goal is noble.  Keeping our intentions focused like a laser beam is a herculean task. No mere human can help but fail. The objective is not to attain perfection, and we are kidding ourselves if we believe we will not encounter difficulties.

The reward is in attaining incremental improvements every day. Success lives within us when we rise after each defeat. Those small daily, hourly, and minute by minute victories build confidence.  We won’t have to wonder, “what if I had tried just one more time?” In life, nobody applauds the make or break decisions that define genuine achievement. Look around and congratulate yourself on the phenomenal progress you made today.

How will you celebrate your best today?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – October 5

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 5 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 279 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The Cold Realities of Creating Your Inspirational Walden – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 12 Comments
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The chilly Sunday dawn dances with a magical quality. Bright red cardinals compete for fat sunflower seeds. Red-winged blackbirds, chickadees, goldfinches, and a downy woodpecker flit between the feeder and the evergreens. Squirrels chase each other through the yard, fighting over every titbit, they remain oblivious to the hawk floating in lazy circles in the crystal blue sky. It may not be Walden, but it is my slice of nature carved from a suburban landscape.  

A frosty mist clings to the ground, laying heavy on autumn air, as the weakening sun promises to hold off the rain and warm the day. The fresh morning brims with pledges of freezing rain, a snowy winter, and long nights in front of the fire. A deep breath, a hot cup of coffee, and a soft breeze erases worry and clears the mind. At last, the ideas flow.  

How do you spend your Sunday mornings?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing. Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – October 4

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 5 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 278 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Letting Your Voices Trick You into A Productive Day – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 3 Comments
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Leave it to the chattering voices droning in my head. They destroyed a perfectly wonderful plan, a plan filled with rest, relaxation, and fun. No writing, no lists, no alarm clocks, no worries. Morning coffee, a deep breath, I barely had a chance to exhale. The voices saw an opening and jumped.

“Hello?” they said. “You’ve had your coffee? Awake? Feeling rested?  You’re always saying you’re busy and that you don’t have time. We see you’re not busy right now. Is it a good time? Nothing major. A few words, perhaps?”

Can you say “Guilt” with a capital “G?” Well played voices. How can I say no? Yeah, okay, a few words. They are a sneaky bunch. You must watch them, anticipate their subterfuge. A few words, then a few words more, became filled pages. Devious, they are. They artfully derailed my plans, advanced their agendas, and made sure I had a fun day.

Do your voices interrupt your plans?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – October 3

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 3 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 277 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Old Friday Night Bleacher Reads and Their Unintentional Souvenirs – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 11 Comments
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While I didn’t grow up in San Antonio, I spent most Friday nights at high school football games. Tucked into my jacket, I kept a paperback handy for the boring parts, otherwise known as all the parts except halftime. Our team was not very good because I recall starting and finishing plenty of volumes while they competed.

Kerouac and Wilde weren’t on my list, but I remember many stories as being bleacher reads. They still evoke the aroma of fall leaves and bonfires. Touring my bookcase, I pulled titles with an indelible link to the gridiron. To Kill a Mockingbird, Animal Farm, The Great Gatsby, Death of a Salesman, 1984, The Catcher in the Rye, Of Mice and Men, Heart of Darkness, and Breakfast at Tiffany’s remind me of homecoming games and referee whistles. A few stories create a visceral reaction, including the Lord of the Flies, Frankenstein, and Macbeth, which I read around Halloween. Who needs scary movies when you have diabolical books, read outside where real shadows creep just below your feet?

Then there is my all-time favorite, Fahrenheit 451. Besides being assigned reading, the teachers treated us to the 1966 film adaptation. They remade the movie a couple of years ago, and I have yet to see it. I enjoyed the old François Truffaut movie and loved the final scene with the book people reciting their memorized novels. Somehow, I don’t want to disturb the poignant ending.

Do some books conjure the place and time when you first met them?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – October 2

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 8 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 276 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

Accepting Failure and Plotting Your New Path to Success – Daily Quote

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 8 Comments
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Another new month presents a fresh opportunity to renew my commitment to reaching my objectives. This year has offered many challenges. I admit to feeling steamrolled, flattened, knocked off course, spinning like a weathervane in a tornado — lost. Now October comes roaring in, reminding me the end of 2020 will arrive in ninety days. My carefully crafted agendas with ambitious projects lay in unfulfilled tatters at my feet.

It is astonishing how everything disintegrated. It would be easy to blame global events. But when I am objective, I recognized the real reason, and in my heart, I know how to fix it. I must stop being scared. Life-changing circumstances have left me frozen in fear, unable to move, I became stagnant in working towards my success. My responses descended into freaking out when I didn’t have all the answers to the world’s problems.

Then I understood that it is not my responsibility to have every solution. And I realized the Universe doesn’t care about me. My plans, my hopes, and dreams don’t even register as a blip in the vast cosmos. The only person who cares is me. I am the lone soul capable of completing them. My reward, if I am lucky, maybe to help one person in their struggles.

I am fighting back, refusing to relinquish my desire to reach my 2020 goals. While I have fallen behind, I can still make headway. There are thirty-one chances to advance, thirty-one steps to bring me closer to victory. I dusted off the goal list, checked my progress to date, and identified key areas where I want to focus. I plotted and prepared a schedule for each day in October. It only remains to execute the daily plan.

Have you planned your month?

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer

The 2020 Daily Writing Challenge – October 1

/ JoHawkTheWriter / 5 Comments

2020 Daily Writing Challenge

Writing is like driving at night in the fog.
You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.
– E. L. Doctorow

Today is Day 275 of the 2020 Daily Writing Challenge.

Did you write yesterday? Half of the year is in our rear-view mirror, and I am drawing a line in the sand. The targets I missed, the stories I didn’t compose, they no longer matter. These last six months are history. Done. I won’t lie, 2020 kicked me in the head, leaving me stunned, unsteady, and incapable of completing anything beyond basic tasks. I bet I am not alone, but don’t count me out yet. They say what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, right? I am confident I will discover I am more capable than I have ever been. I dug deep, reevaluated my annual goals, and I decided to double down. Can I get a year’s worth of work accomplished by Christmas? We will find out.

My turning point happened when I remembered reading somewhere that anxiety and excitement create similar emotional responses in the body. Anxiety raises your heart rate, your cortisol level increases, and your nerves prepare you for action. Most often, we respond by stress-eating a late-night pint of chocolate ice cream. The only difference between the two emotions is anxiety has a negative connotation, while we view excitement as positive. The answer seemed clear. I needed to reframe the context of my emotions and proceed as if my success lies on the horizon.

All that remains is for me to divide my workload into bite-size pieces, and do the next right thing. I am aligning my creative endeavors to focus on writing, editing, and creating a brighter future.

Try it, and let us know how you did in the comments below.

_________________________________________

Keep on writing.

Jo Hawk The Writer